Whenever we talk about the Golden Raspberry Awards, alternatively known as the Razzies and A Cheap Exercise in Snark That Doesn’t Actually Go After the Worst Movies of the Year But Rather the Most Obvious Punching Bags, it’s important to remember that these “awards” are the worst. With that said, Zoolander 2 and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice led the 2017 Razzie nominations.

The past week must’ve been rough for director Alex Proyas. His career has had its ups and downs, including his scrapped adaptation of Paradise Lost, but these last few days, in particular, haven’t been great. Critics ripped Gods of Egypt apart and audiences didn’t show up for the pricey adventure movie.

Following the disastrous opening, Proyas then wrote a Facebook post criticizing reviewers of his latest, making both fair and unfair points. As the director mentioned, even two of his most beloved movies, Dark Cityand The Crow, weren’t huge hits with critics during their theatrical releases. The latter even became a big enough hit that it has been gearing up for a remake for years — which Proyas would rather not see happen.

Gods of Egypt opened this past weekend to turgid reviews and worse box office, making only $14 million against a reported budget of $140 million (before marketing costs, of course). The film is a Jupiter Ascending-sized flop, and like that film, it’s actually easy to see why it failed to perform: it’s really, really weird. Whether that weirdness works or not is the question, and that answer can only arrive with time. But right now, regular film fans and critics alike have rejected the film.

And now, director Alex Proyas has let his displeasure be known to the masses, unleashing a brutal tirade against film critics. It’s the kind of thing that’s going to promote knee-jerk reactions of all kinds, but the issue at hand here is a bit more nuanced than that.

Gods of Egypt has looked like a disaster since those goofy character posters arrived so long ago and most of the trailers have looked downright bad. However, I’m starting to think that this isn’t an ordinary disaster. Oh, no. Gods of Egypt is starting to look like my kind of disaster, the kind of train wreck that can only occur when a bunch of genuinely interesting people with an actual vision get together…and then bump heads as they stumble around in the dark.

The 88th Oscars don’t take place for another several days, but we can already say with absolute certainty that all four winners in the acting categories will be white — because for the second year in a row, only white actors were nominated. #OscarsSoWhite has been the defining controversy of this year’s awards season, sparking uncomfortable and long overdue conversations about who wins these awards, and why, and what should be done about it.

But #OscarsSoWhite is really only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Hollywood’s race problem. There’s also the fact that roles for people of color are all too rare to begin with. And then even when they do exist, they often wind up getting filled by white actors. In last night’s episode of Last Week Tonight, John Oliver and his team took on Hollywood whitewashing, asking, “How is this still a thing?” Watch the John Oliver Hollywood whitewashing segment after the jump. Read More »

The Super Bowl is the ultimate expression of the American id: a game where people hit each other really hard, advertisements for cheese flavored chips, extravagant halftime shows put on with colorful panache, and, of course, trailers for the biggest, loudest movies coming within the next year.

I kid because I love. The Super Bowl is ridiculous and the ads are ridiculous and the culture surrounding it is ridiculous, but it’s a good time. Plus, even when the game stinks (and last night’s game really stunk), you get to watch a whole bunch of movie trailers that have to be good because movie studios spent an exorbitant amount of money to buy this ad space. And if there’s one thing more American than the Super Bowl, it’s devoting a few thousand words to breaking down all of the noteworthy spots that premiered during last night’s game.

Super Bowl spots never come cheap, but this year they cost more than ever: up to $5 million for a 30-second spot, according to reports. Which means the studios have to bring it to make sure that steep price tag is worth it — and bring it they did.

This year’s batch included our very first peek at the newly titled Jason Bourne, another look inside the mysterious 10 Cloverfield Lane, a glimpse of Krang from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, some clever not-quite promos for Batman v Superman, plus trailers for Independence Day: Resurgence, X-Men: Apocalypse, and much more. Watch all the 2016 Super Bowl movie trailers after the jump. Read More »

If Gerard Butler screaming as a power-hungry god along with tons of crazy creatures flying around and destroying things doesn’t get you interested in Alex Proyas‘ action epic, then nothing will. Lionsgate has just debuted a 60-second Super Bowl spot for Gods of Egypt, attempting to get the crowd that loves both football and 300 on board this positively insane looking movie. There’s a good chance it just might work. Watch the Gods of Egypt Super Bowl spot after the jump. Read More »

On paper, Gods of Egypt sounds like a real treat – an old-school adventure movie that uses Egyptian mythology as stepping stone to showcase gnarly monsters and giant battles between immortal gods should be something any self-respecting fan of good things can get behind. But in trailer form, Gods of Egypt looks like a disaster. It also looked like a disaster when the second trailer arrived. And now, the third time is not the charm.

Still, there are noteworthy elements scattered throughout the wreckage of the new preview that are worthy of your time and attention, should you be interested in such things.Read More »

The marketing campaign for Gods of Egypt got off to a rocky start, to say the least. The first character posters were, to be frank, ugly, and the messy first trailer wasn’t much better. To top it all off, the film has already sparked criticism for its mostly white cast, prompting apologies from both director Alex Proyas and studio Lionsgate.

But it’s far too late to change anything as fundamental as the casting, or the look and feel of the entire movie, so all Gods of Egypt can do is soldier on. The latest Gods of Egypt trailer tones down the crazy a bit, but does that actually make it look better, or just more boring? Find out for yourself after the jump. Read More »